Hard-up Spain begs contestant not to win Eurovision Song Contest

Spain’s entrant into the Eurovision Song Contest Pastora Soler has revealed that she was instructed by broadcasters not to win the event in Baku, Azerbaijan because of the financial crisis in her country.

Pastora Soler performs during a rehearsal for the Eurovision 2012 song contest in Baku (Picture: Getty)

Pastora, who will enter Eurovision with her ballad Quedate Conmigo (Stay With Me), admitted that directors of Spanish broadcaster TVE have joked that she mustn’t win the competition because the country can’t afford it.

Under Eurovision rules, the winner of each year’s contest has to host the competition the following year – an exercise that often proves costly for the host nation.

Speaking to ABC Punto Radio, Soler revealed that TVE bosses had urged her: ‘Please, don’t win!’ as she prepared to go to Baku for the big event.

‘If we won, I think it would be impossible to stage the next edition because it costs so much money,’ the Spanish singer said.

The German, Spanish, Italian and French entrants wave at the Big 5 event of the Eurovision Song Contest (Picture: EPA)

‘I think it is not the moment, neither for Spain nor for Spanish public, to win Eurovision.’

Spain, where the unemployment rate is almost 25 per cent, has been battling a particularly brutal recession and the government has introduced numerous austerity measures to combat the crisis.

The UK will be represented at Eurovision by Engelbert Humperdinck (Picture: PA)

Cuts to spending on public television has seen several popular TV shows being cancelled as the Spanish government tries to save money where it can.

The Spanish Eurovision incident echoes an episode of Irish sitcom Father Ted from 1996, in which the titular priest enters Eurosong – a spoof of Eurovision – with the song My Lovely Horse.